


of christmas lights and snowy nights

by cherryladi



Category: Red Velvet (K-pop Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Christmas Fluff, F/F, Fluff, Friends to Lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-27 08:39:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,430
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17158808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherryladi/pseuds/cherryladi
Summary: “She’s like Mister Scrooge!” Joy abruptly blurted out.Yeri groaned, facepalming at her best friend’s statement, “Scrooge doesn’t like Christmas, you idiot.”Joy looked at her in quiet amazement that lasted the span of around five seconds until coming back to reality, “Oh yeah, Miss Bae loves Christmas!”-or, in which Seulgi learns about the pleasures of the holidays from her supposedly frost-hearted neighbor, Irene.





	of christmas lights and snowy nights

The moving van steered over to the sidewalk of the modest, suburban house, coming to a stop when it had maneuvered into the compact driveway, its tires screeching when the middle-aged man driving suddenly stomped down on the brakes. The car and its contents rocked, including a very bewildered Kang Seulgi grabbing onto the armrest for support, the seat belt strapped onto her being the sole reason her face had not yet collided with the back of the man’s seat. The unexpected stop had repelled her backward the second the car regained its balance, her back instead hitting  _ her _ seat. 

 

She quietly groaned, rubbing the sore area and glaring at the driver’s head. She quickly looked away when he turned back, offering her a wry grin while parking the car. Seulgi inhaled, ready to fire a complaint at him, but she remembered the steep price she had to pay for the extra assistance. She bit her cheek, letting the not-so-kind statements fade away.

 

The man opened his car door, the frigid winter air quickly invading the inside and leaving Seulgi shivering. She soon followed suit, exiting the vehicle reluctantly and letting herself get used to the low outside temperature. She rubbed her arms for some extra friction and warmth, making her way to the back of the truck where the man had been waiting. He leaned on the side of the trunk, crossing his arms and clicking his tongue. Seulgi glanced at him expectantly, but the man just stood motionless.

 

“Extra for unloading,” He finally said.

 

Seulgi blinked, the words processing in her head, “Excuse me?”

 

“You’ll have to pay extra for unloading,” The man repeated, his demeanor turning slightly sour.

 

This time, it was Seulgi’s turn to cross her arms, “I’ve already paid.”

 

“You’ve paid for the trip here. You’ve sat in my car, I’ve driven here, and now my job is done,” The man clarified, “Well… unless you pay extra, which is always an option.”

 

Seulgi gaped at him, “You can’t be serious.”

 

“Ma’am, did I stutter? We all have to earn in this tough economy,” He reasoned, gesturing with his hand.

 

Seulgi closed her eyes in silent annoyance, “Could you at least take out my belongings from the trunk?”

 

He shrugged.

 

“Whatever,” She sighed, steam curling from her lips. She approached the towering stack of possessions she’d moved from her old studio apartment, stopping right in front to decide which item to take out first. One of the things, her down pillow, was hanging precariously off of everything else, being at the very top. Seulgi looked up at it, nodding to herself when she noted how difficult to grab it was. 

 

She got on her tippy-toes, the small action already unbalancing her wholly. She waved her arms to steady herself, flapping viciously to get a hold of something. Unfortunately for her, the thing she got a hold of was at the bottom — an old college notebook she’d never bothered to throw out (because of the memories, obviously.)

 

Seulgi jerked the notebook out of its little crevice at the bottom, and for a second everything was fine, everything was calm. The next second, however, was when things really fell out of place, quite literally.

 

“The offer still stands…” The man eyed the fallen possessions and Seulgi. 

 

Seulgi glanced at the man and then at her belongings. She rubbed the soot off of her hands and got up from the pavement.

 

“How much?”

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi sighed.   _ How could such an absurdly grand amount of money be lost in only one day?  _ After she had asked the man for help, he wholeheartedly agreed, but at one cost: she pay him first. So the shivering girl had to dig into her barren wallet, snuff out some bills, and shove them into the greedy man’s hands. He enthusiastically picked everything up and stored them back into their boxes with ease, without even breaking a sweat (or in this season’s case, without exhaling a single puff of white.) He even went as far as to carry all the individual boxes and loose belongings inside the new house, being extra careful with them. Seulgi scoffed at the sight. Some people could be so easily swayed by money. 

 

She unpacked all the things the man brought inside and basked in the warmth that her heating was providing. The woolen sweater she was sporting seemed too hot and heavy all of a sudden. She tugged it off, revealing a too-small, blank, white tee under. Seulgi threw the sweater on a couch that had been provided already — the house had already been furnished — and got to work. She pushed all the heavy boxes to where they belonged in their respective rooms. She was extra cautious while handling the food to put in the kitchen and lightly placed those boxes on the marble counterpart. Seulgi decided to put everything together and get it all in place before the night overtook, as she didn’t want to think about anything else in the morning other than relaxing. 

 

/-/-/

 

She wiped sweat from her brow as she looked at the house she had finally finished decorating to make it her own. She had lit the fireplace in the living room earlier since the impeccable heating from earlier was beginning to wane. The blackened logs crackled in the fire, sending Seulgi a whiff of the wood. She felt a wave of exhaustion rush over her, and she trudged up the flimsy stairs to where the bedroom was located.

 

Seulgi shut the door behind her and threw herself onto the bed as soon as she was close enough. The musky scent of the fireplace was washed away by the fresh fragrance of the sheets, smelling sweetly of lavender. After escaping the smell of burning timber, Seulgi realized that almost everything that was washable here had the lavender scent stuck onto it, and the more it invaded her senses, the lighter her head became. She blinked, trying to snap herself awake even when she fully knew, even in her half-asleep state, that it was in vain. Seulgi tucked herself under the pristine sheets and fell into a deep, well-deserved sleep.

 

She’d deal with the new neighborhood and its neighbors in the morning.

 

/-/-/

 

Sunlight shone through the curtains and Seulgi fluttered her eyes open, adjusting her vision to the bright light. She pulled the blankets off of her, feeling the warmth of the sun contrast with the freezing temperatures of her new bedroom. In the light, she could finally see what was inside her room without having to squint. There was already a dresser and nightstand situated near her bed, so she wouldn’t have to go buy those, but the room looked awfully bland from the lack of colors. She’d probably have to decorate it with at least  _ something.  _ Seulgi rubbed her arms, feeling the goosebumps forming on her pale skin and shivers running down her spine. 

 

She went to check the thermostat downstairs, the steps beneath her creaking as she plodded down. She reached it and immediately pressed the buttons on it, trying her best to do whatever she could to make the temperature inside rise. The thin shirt she was sporting was definitely not doing much to cover her body. The freezing air was going to take time to balance itself with the heat that was now turned on once more. 

 

Deciding to go outside for a bit, she draped her jacket on, pulled a beanie over her unkempt hair, and tied a scarf around her neck.

 

Time to meet the neighbors. 

 

/-/-/

 

“Joy! Give me the ball back, it’s mine!” A voice screeched out, echoing throughout the lonesome, silent street. Well, lonesome and silent except for the two girls playing catch in the middle of the pavement. 

 

“No way! You did this to me last time, so I’m doing it to you,” Another voice — Joy, Seulgi thought — protested back, the bouncing of the ball on the ground clearly heard.

 

“It’s my ball. I can do what I want with it,” The first girl resolutely stated.

 

“B-but please, Yeri? I want to play with it now. I’ll give it back to you in a few minutes so we can play together,” Joy whined. The bounces ceased.

 

Yeri sighed, “Fine, okay. Promise?”

 

“Yep!” Joy placed the ball down to intertwine her pinky with Yeri’s.

 

Seulgi quietly walked up behind the two and picked up the ball they left. She threw it around a bit, remembering her memories of being on the basketball team back in high school. Wow, it’d been a long time since she’d spun a ball on her finger. She tried to recreate what she used to be able to do, but since it had been a long time ago, she haphazardly dropped the ball from her grip, bouncing and coming to a stop at Joy’s feet, who had been staring at Seulgi the whole time. 

 

Yeri talked first, “Who are  _ you? _ ”

 

Seulgi impishly smiled and scratched the back of her neck, “Sorry…”

 

“Whoa, why are you saying sorry? Can you twirl the ball on your finger?” Joy excitedly asked.

 

“I kinda can,” Seulgi answered, a genuine smile beginning to spread now. “I used to be able to, anyway.”

 

“Can you teach me?” Joy picked up the ball and offered it to Seulgi with a big grin.

 

“We don’t even know who she is, Joy! STRANGER DANGER!” Yeri shrieked.

 

“No! No!” Seulgi frantically waved her arms, “I’m your new neighbor! I just moved in yesterday!” The girls visibly calmed down. 

 

“Oh, you’re Miss Kang Seulgi…?” Yeri cocked her head to the side, “I honestly thought you’d be an old hag.”

 

“Yeri, be nice!” Joy chided.

 

“You can’t be nice and honest at the same time!” Yeri retorted.

 

“It’s fine,” Seulgi chuckled, “you didn’t know any better.”

 

“Yeah,  _ Joy,  _ I didn’t know,” Yeri looked pointedly at her.

 

Joy raised her hands in surrender, the ball rolling down, “Jeez, okay.”

 

Seulgi took the initiative to ask a question she’d been wanting to ask for a while, “So, are you guys friends? Where do you live?”

 

Yeri cringed at the last question, “That sounds quite creepy, Miss Kang.”

 

Joy smacked her arm, “How else would you ask it?” Yeri pouted and let the latter answer.

 

“We live a bit down the street; so not right beside you nor parallel,” Joy explained.

 

“Then do you know who lives near where I do?” Seulgi played with the threads of her scarf.

 

“Your house number is 2043 right?” Seulgi nodded at Joy.

 

“Well, on your left is Mrs. Kim Taeyeon. She’s really nice and sometimes sings for us whenever we have events at our neighborhood clubhouse. On your right is Mr. Lee Minho. He likes to play games with the kids in the neighborhood because he thinks we’re all on our electronic devices too much in this day and age. He’s not all that bad, but he can be a little overbearing when you first meet him.”

 

“Gotcha. What about the house in front of me?” 

 

Joy and Yeri stayed silent, giving each other wary glances and then looking back at Seulgi. Joy nudged Yeri with her elbow. The latter winced but held eye contact with Seulgi.

 

“Miss Bae Irene lives there,” Yeri curtly replied.

 

“And what about her do I need to know?” Seulgi prodded.

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“You gave very detailed descriptions for every one of my other neighbors. Why not her?”

 

Yeri looked down at her feet, “Miss Bae is… how do I say this?”

 

Joy interrupted, “She’s scary.”

 

Yeri grimaced, “I didn’t want to say it like that but yeah, she’s cold.”

 

“How is she cold?” Seulgi was intrigued, to say the least.

 

“Well, first off when she first moved here, it was a quiet move-in. No one knew she was going to be living here. Second, whenever we’d try to smile and greet her, she would avert her eyes and go back to her house. I’ve seen her outside, but it’s on rare occasions,” Yeri said.

 

“She’s like Mr. Scrooge!” Joy abruptly blurted out.

 

Yeri groaned, facepalming at her best friend’s statement, “Scrooge doesn’t like Christmas, you idiot.”

 

Joy looked at her in quiet amazement that lasted the span of around five seconds until coming back to reality, “Oh yeah, Miss Bae loves Christmas!”

 

Seulgi narrowed her eyes, “How could you be ‘cold’ but love Christmas? Those are like polar opposites!” She laughed lightly at her own joke.

 

“Beats me,” Yeri sighed.

 

“Usually by now Miss Bae would have already decorated the exterior of her house,” Joy observed the house in the distance. “But it seems she might be a little late this year.”

 

Seulgi gazed in the direction that Joy‐now Yeri as well‐was looking at. The house was prim and proper with cleanly-cut grass and trimmed bushes. The lawn and outside looked cared for, which played against what Joy and Yeri insisted about Miss Bae being a homebody. 

 

“I don’t know, Joy, she always manages to surprise us,” Yeri raised an eyebrow. “She will most likely have them up at the end of the week.”

 

“Don’t you see her when she’s hanging up decorations, though?” Seulgi took off her woolen beanie and ran her fingers through her mussed hair.

 

“Never,” Joy and Yeri said simultaneously. They had an expression of pure horror after that but returned their attention to Seulgi.

 

“She does them when we’re not here,” Yeri scratched her head. “Either that or she does them during the early day and late night.”

 

“Probably the latter,” Seulgi chuckled, “I’m looking forward to meeting the infamous Miss Bae now.”

 

“Good luck: you might never will,” Joy responded with a cackle.

 

Seulgi shrugged at the two girls giggling, “Fair enough.”

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi spent the entire day getting acquainted with all the neighbors, sharing talks and food for hours. She did this with all of them. Almost all. 

 

Miss Bae Irene had not made herself known to Seulgi yet, and Seulgi didn’t know whether she should be nervous or excited about her.

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi didn’t think she’d be waking up to technicolor deer this early in the morning, but here she was. The deer were all strung to one cable cord snaking to an outlet located outside of Miss Bae’s house, like an interesting remake of the Labyrinth and Ariadne’s thread. It lit up Miss Bae’s previously plain lawn, coating everything in bright and tinted shades of red, green, and colors in between.

 

She didn’t know her jaw went slack until her throat began feeling dry. Seulgi closed her mouth and looked back at Miss Bae’s house then at herself. She did it again.

 

Her eyes flashed to the house.

 

Then to herself. 

 

_ When did Miss Bae get the time to even do that- _

 

Seulgi pinched her thigh.

 

“Ow!” She hissed.

 

/-/-/

 

_ Why was she at the store again?  _

 

Seulgi glanced at the cart she was pushing. It was nearly overflowing with Christmas decorations, ranging from lights to creepy Santa statues. Seulgi shuddered when she made eye contact with the inanimate Santa, its eyes boring holes into her soul. 

 

It was safe to say that the Santa statue didn’t go home with her that day.

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi struggled with hanging the stockings outside her porch. She had already hung them up near her fireplace where she had also placed her fake Christmas tree. It was already covered in ornaments and streamers, with a small, bright star gracing the top. The tree was pretty, Seulgi had to admit, but was it really worth all the trouble she went through?

 

(Said tree practically toppled on her around three times when she was decorating it. Damned Christmas tree.) 

 

She stuck a colorful wreath on her door, stepping back to see if it were centered and aligned. She patted herself on the back when she saw that she had put it up flawlessly the first time.

 

_ Your turn, Miss Bae. _

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi’s silent challenge didn’t go unnoticed by Miss Bae, and the former was soon greeted with the sight of red candy canes now lining the driveway of her house, flashing at different rates for a domino effect look. 

 

Seulgi had to give her points for the creativity and for having it look aesthetically appealing. Now, Miss Bae’s house had both lit-up reindeer and candy canes.

 

Seulgi seemed to get the message that Miss Bae wanted to come across.

 

_ It’s on, Kang Seulgi.  _

 

/-/-/

 

“You’re decorating, too?!” Joy exclaimed, “I didn’t take you for one to go all out.”

 

“Chill out, kid,” Seulgi ruffled Joy’s hair, much to the latter’s annoyance, “I’m not gonna go all out.”

 

“That’s what they all say,” Yeri warned. “I merely thought you’d hang a wreath and bid goodnight!”

 

“I did do that as well,” Seulgi paused. “I may have just added a bit more.”

 

“I saw that Miss Bae decorated. Then after a few hours you did, too,” Joy leaned in closer, “Something to tell us, Miss Kang?”

 

Seulgi rolled her eyes at the kid’s nosiness, “Literally nothing.”

 

Joy slumped her shoulders, “Really?”

 

“I’m not decorating just to compete with Miss Bae. I’m doing it because I haven’t done it in a few years and I wanna feel what it’s like to have the Christmas spirit surging through you, y’know?” The obvious lie bittered Seulgi’s tongue, but she still went along with it.

 

“Sure,” Yeri deadpanned. 

 

“What?” Seulgi frowned, “Are you judging me, midget?” Seulgi playfully teased Yeri, and the young girl jabbed her side. 

 

Joy grinned, “I’m not one to judge you, Miss Kang. Neither is Yeri. But, I have to tell you this: I don’t know Miss Bae very well, but I do know that she’s  _ very  _ competitive.”

 

Yeri finished Joy’s thought, “And she  _ will _ win.”

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi evenly distributed the empty gift boxes across her lawn. The grass had already started browning, but with the presents laying on it, the vivid colors of the boxes made her lawn a lot more vibrant. When she was done, she looked at the pattern of red, green, and white presents scattered across the grass and smiled to herself. She had countless decorations in store, but decided to keep them to herself before putting them outside. 

 

She clicked the button on the switch. The boxes illuminated her lawn as well now, a splash of color to go along with all the other decorations on her porch. Seulgi glanced over to the other side of the road, where a sled wrapped in green lights lay. 

 

_ Ah, she’s quicker than I am.  _

 

/-/-/

 

“And you’ve never seen Miss Bae at least once?” Yeri pressed the question.

 

Seulgi stopped playing with her phone and set it down. The parents of Yeri and Joy had become acquainted enough with Seulgi to ask the young woman to babysit them for the day, and Seulgi was happy to accept. The two rascals were a handful sometimes, but that doesn’t mean they weren’t fun to be around. Hanging out with the middle-schoolers made Seulgi feel young again. They were currently just sitting in Joy’s basement, a show being played in the background and the three of them just talking.

 

“Not that I remember, no,” Seulgi thought back. She hadn’t met Miss Bae at all, but Seulgi hadn’t realized it until Yeri asked. 

 

“You can’t blame her,” Joy chimed in, “Miss Bae doesn’t make herself known to the neighborhood. Sometimes I forget that the house in front of Miss Kang’s is actually inhabited.”

 

“That’s rude, Joy,” Seulgi scolded.

 

“What? Are you defending her now? You don’t even know her!” Joy argued. 

 

Seulgi tucked the phone into the back pocket of her jeans, “Yeah, but I’m trying to be a decent person here. Give her the benefit of the doubt.”

 

“It’s not like she wants it,” Yeri huffed. “We already tried, and  _ no one  _ can resist us.” The girls made a show of pouting cutely.

 

“How old are you? Five?” Seulgi poked Yeri.

 

“No! I’m twelve!” 

 

“Act your age, then,” Seulgi sternly replied.

 

“Ouch, you sound like my mom,” Yeri lamented, “and that’s not a good sign.”

 

“Sorry,” Seulgi meekly said, “It’s just that I feel like I have to be a good role model.” Seulgi brought a fist to her chest.

 

Joy scoffed, “Whatever you say, Miss Kang.” 

 

Yeri whisper-yelled to Joy: “How old is  _ she?  _ Thirty?”

 

“YAH!”

 

/-/-/

 

“You should make an effort to try and see her though,” Joy suggested.

 

“Why?”   
  


“Because I think you’ll be surprised when you see what she actually looks like,” Yeri giggled.

 

Seulgi looked at them weirdly and motioned for them to go on, “Is she ugly?”

 

Joy and Yeri side-glanced before completely losing it. Yeri stopped laughing just so she could breathe, “No, Miss Kang! Quite the opposite!”

 

Seulgi furrowed her brows, “What do you mean by that?”

 

Joy smirked, “You’ll see once you meet her!”

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi tugged the blankets over her chest, blankly looking up at the white ceiling. The heater was working, thankfully, so she wasn’t freezing her toes off. Her mind wandered off into some distant plane until she couldn’t get a grasp of it anymore, letting it run free. She pondered on what the two middle-schoolers said. What if she actually met Miss Bae? What would that even be like? Seulgi wasn’t a very sociable human being and often had trouble initiating conversations. It’s not until she forgot how to be nervous that she could formulate coherent sentences. Maybe their meeting would be insanely awkward. Seulgi cringed at the thought. 

 

If that were to happen, Seulgi might have to call off whatever decoration war that’s going on between them. 

 

And she wouldn’t want to do that. It’d been a source of amusement the past week they’ve been going at it. 

 

The past few hours had consisted of a stalemate, but Seulgi knew that Miss Bae would soon change it.

 

_ Give me your best, Miss Bae.  _

 

/-/-/

 

It was a week after putting up her Christmas tree that Seulgi met her.

 

She was in bed, tossing and turning from an unwarranted nightmare. She woke up in a cold sweat, her shirt plastered to her back and her hair unruly in a cow lick. Her breathing was shallow and ragged, and she had to calm down before even taking in her surroundings. The fact that Seulgi couldn’t even remember what she was dreaming about was a peculiar thing. How she could be traumatized from something she couldn’t even remember was beyond her. 

 

Seulgi got out of bed, kicking on the bear slippers she left near her bed and opened her bedroom door. She went downstairs and into the kitchen, hoping to get a glass of water to relax her nerves. The cold water dripped from the tap as she held it the clean glass, with whatever not going into the cup spilling onto her hands. She turned the knob when the water was about to fill the brim, and chugged the liquid, feeling as if sharp icicles were running down her throat. Her eyes located the clock hung on top of the passageway to the living room. It was around seven in the morning, give or take. 

 

Seulgi could either fall back asleep or go the rest of the day. She decided on the former, but when she was taking her steps back to the bedroom, a loud clang resonated in the otherwise silent neighborhood. It grabbed Seulgi’s attention enough for the woman to place her glass near the sink and jerk her jacket off the coat rack. She adjusted the long tee she was wearing so that it wouldn’t overlap with the sleeve of her jacket and toed off her slippers. She got some shoes on and went out of the front door, curious to see what had occurred for such a noise to come from the house parallel to her. 

 

The sun was just peeking over the horizon when Seulgi saw her, a small figure struggling on her tippy-toes to hang a string of Christmas lights over the top end of her porch. Long waves of chocolate brown fell down to her shoulders, giving her hair a tousled look. She was dressed in pajama shorts — despite of the weather  — and an oversized sweater covering half of her form. Her fingers skillfully looped the lights around and under the threshold. Only, it’d be more skillful if it weren’t for her lacking height. Ever so often, she’d trip over her two feet and drop something, resulting in more noise and curses. 

 

Seulgi was mesmerized. Her feet began taking her across the street before she’d even been aware of it, and soon enough, Seulgi was already a few steps from climbing up her porch. She quietly snuck up behind her, and while she was reaching to twirl the lights up, Seulgi took it out of her hands with ease and looped them in for her. She whipped around to witness a smirking Seulgi, and her face went from shock to confusion in a matter of seconds. 

 

“Who‐” Her velvety voice was laced with adorable surprise, wide eyes blinking and brows scrunching. 

 

Seulgi beamed at her, bringing up a shy hand for her to shake, “Kang Seulgi. Nice to finally meet you, Miss Bae Irene.”

 

/-/-/

  
  


“So,  _ you’re  _ Kang Seulgi,” Miss Bae poured the steaming tea straight from the pot to Seulgi’s waiting cup, seeing the wisps of steam curl from the liquid. 

 

Seulgi hummed, “And you’re Miss Bae?” She grasped the cup with flimsy fingers, nearly dropping the whole thing if not for having another hand right under the cup. 

 

“You know you can just call me Irene, right?” She laughed, a high-pitched giggle coming from parted lips — Seulgi  _ definitely _ didn’t expect to be the kind of laugh that Irene would make. She liked it, nonetheless; it suited her. 

 

Seulgi blew on the hot tea, smelling the chamomile from the action, “Sorry, I didn’t want to come off as rude so I just went with the most polite option,” She licked her lips and brought the tea up to her lips.

 

“I’d rather it be Irene; Miss Bae makes me feel so, so old,” Irene shook her head, a soft smile creeping onto her delicate features.

 

“From what the other neighbors told me, I’d assumed at first that you’d be an old hag,” Seulgi grinned, recalling what Yeri had called her the first time they met as well. 

 

Irene covered her face in her hands, her hair falling down to curtain it, too. Cute. She poked her head out and glanced at Seulgi, “Well, what about now?”

 

Seulgi set the cup down and pulled Irene’s hands apart so that her face wasn’t hidden. There was pink dusted on her cheeks, “What I think now is the absolute opposite.”

 

/-/-/

 

“You’re 27?” Seulgi asked incredulously.

 

Irene chuckled, feigning an expression of hurt, “Do I look older? If you want to just say it, then do!”

 

Seulgi’s eyes widened to the size of saucers, “No! From the way you acted and how you look it doesn’t seem like you’d be 27!”

 

Irene nodded, a satisfied smile taking over, “That’s more like it.”

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi found out that Irene was actually a good person to socialize with, as the girl would always have something to say in response to Seulgi’s wild stories that she had been recounting. 

 

“There’s no way that happened,” Irene crossed your arms. “Even though you may be taller than me, you couldn’t dunk the ball into the hoop at your height.”

 

“What? Are you accusing me of lying? I can jump very high so that makes up for my height, thank you very much,” Seulgi fired back.

 

“Still very impossible,” At this point, Irene wasn’t trying to accuse Seulgi or hurt her pride but seeing the girl’s offended look was cute enough for her to keep going. “Were you going against elementary school kids, Seulgi?”

 

“No… it was middle school!”

 

“I think there’s more to it.”

 

“The hoop may have been lowered a tiny bit,” Seulgi emphasized her statement by using her fingers to tell the other how small, “Just this much!”

 

“There it is,” Irene rolled her eyes playfully, much to Seulgi’s adorable exasperation.

 

/-/-/

 

Before they knew it, the clock in the corner of Irene’s living room was about to tick ten. The tea they had both been sipping had been long forgotten, and the two flowed from topic to topic in their conversation with ease. Seulgi’s eyes wandered across to the clock and flinched slightly. 

 

Irene took notice and stopped her retelling of a story, “What’s wrong?”

 

“Shit, it’s almost ten,” Irene let Seulgi go on, “I have to go babysit Joy and Yeri.”

 

“Did their parents ask you to do this?” Irene frowned.

 

“Partially. I wanted to spend some time with them, too; I haven’t found anyone to hang out with here, yet.”

 

“Hadn’t,” Irene corrected, “You can come over anytime if you’re interested.”

 

“Sounds like a good plan,” Seulgi grinned brightly, “Would that be okay with you?”

 

“I wouldn’t mind the company,” Irene shrugged, “I don’t go out very often anyway.”

 

Seulgi kept silent but then started, “I’ve been meaning to ask you: why don’t you come out and socialize with the neighbors? You seem like a reasonably likable person.”

 

“It’s not a matter of them not liking me,” Irene laughed, “I just don’t like going out. I’m a homebody, and I’d rather stay at home.”

 

“That’s it?” Seulgi narrowed her eyes at the gleeful woman in front of her.

 

“Yep.”

 

“The others think you hate them or something!” Seulgi brought up.

 

“Wait, what? Why would they think that?”

 

“Because you never go out!” Seulgi reiterated with a giggle.

 

“Oh God no, I don’t want them to think that!” Irene brought a hand up to her temples.

 

“Good luck with your predicament, Miss Bae,” Seulgi bowed to her jokingly, “I must get going.” Seulgi grabbed whatever she brought along with her to Irene’s house and bolted to the door, jacket and shoes not even put on properly. Her shoelaces were so untied that Irene was worried that she might trip on them.

 

“Yah, don’t fall on your way! And don’t call me Miss Bae!”

 

“Will do, Miss Bae!” Seulgi shouted behind her back.

 

Irene groaned, the door flying open quickly and shutting with a whoosh. 

 

_ Well, that was different,  _ Irene laughed to herself.

 

/-/-/

  
  


“Did you just see that?” Joy shook Yeri’s shoulder violently to get her attention.

 

“See what?” Yeri jerked Joy’s hold off of her, annoyed. 

 

“Where Miss Kang just exited!”

 

“Where?”

 

“Miss Bae’s house!”

 

“No way.”

 

“Yes way.”

 

“Let’s keep quiet about it and let Miss Kang bring it up on her own accord,” Yeri shushed.

 

“Was already planning to,” Joy smiled devilishly. 

 

/-/-/

 

The hangouts with Irene became regularly, fitting into Seulgi’s routine like it was always there. They’d talk about things that had occured the past weeks, things they were interested in, and things they wanted to happen. Whenever they would have debates about topics that were passionate to them, and if Seulgi were to argue for something Irene was against, the older woman was a force to be reckoned with.

 

“What do you mean lavender isn’t the best scent?!” Irene hollered in fury at the unsuspecting Seulgi who was stifling her laughter.

 

“I just think there are better scents! Some like vanilla… ooh! Citrus!” Seulgi clapped her hands together when the fragrance came to mind.

 

“Citrus is nice, but lavender still remains superior,” Irene leaned back into her chair.

 

“I tried to like lavender, but literally everything in my house is lavender-scented,” Seulgi admitted. “It’s like someone planned this.”

 

Red rushed to Irene’s face. She bit her lip shyly, “Guilty as charged.”

 

“What? Was this you?” Seulgi’s eyebrows shot up, a genuinely surprised look on her face. 

 

“Yeah… I helped with cleaning the house and all that stuff,” Irene muttered.

 

Seulgi laughed now at Irene’s sudden timid demeanor, “I mean, thank you! But, why?”

 

“I just felt like I wanted to help out with the community a bit more, and so when they were asking for help with cleaning up your place, I accepted. It’s not like I did it to make myself suffer or anything, I’m not a masochist, but I… enjoy cleaning, I suppose.” She swiped a tongue over her bottom lip when she was finished. 

 

Seulgi tried hard to hide the smile growing on her face, “You enjoy cleaning? You’d make a good colonial housewife,” She joked. 

 

Irene scowled at her but softened up when Seulgi placed a hand on hers.

 

“Thank you, Irene.”

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi turned her head over to Irene’s house, where the older woman was adjusting the tie of her fake, cotton snowman. She was about to laugh and tease Irene for doing such a thing until her attention was brought back to what  _ she  _ was doing. 

 

“M-merry Christmas!” The fake Santa screeched as it whirred to life thanks to the remote in Seulgi’s shaking hands.

 

“Was this a good idea…?” Seulgi mumbled to herself, terrified of what the Santa would do next.

 

“Merry Christmas!” Seulgi squealed as she heard another greeting, but this time, it wasn’t from demonic Santa.

 

“Why so sudden!” Seulgi placed a hand over her heart, glowering at a cackling Irene.

 

Irene put her pointer finger on her chin and acted innocent, “Oh… that wasn’t you who just wished me a Merry Christmas?”

 

Seulgi groaned, “This is abuse!”

 

“Call it what you want: it’s still hilarious!” Irene shouted from across the street.

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi didn’t know when her heart had begun to accelerate whenever Irene would smile one of  _ those _ smiles at her, look at her like she was the only person in the world, or hug her like she was going to lose her, but she didn’t mind it and she certainly didn’t think she ever would.

 

/-/-/

 

Christmas was fast approaching, but even then, Seulgi wasn’t aware of the days quickly starting and ending. Though Seulgi and Irene had already met, that didn’t mean that their competition finished. It went on as strong as ever, and by the time Christmas Eve had arrived, their houses looked like they had gone through Christmas hell and back. 

 

Seulgi had also grown a strong love for the two girls she’d been babysitting weekly, finding humor in their immature jokes and playing video games with them until sunrise.

 

(Their parents didn’t know that, obviously.)

 

It was early in the morning, and Seulgi came over to Joy’s house where Yeri had already taken residence. Joy and Yeri drank their hot chocolate peacefully, and when Seulgi thought that for the very first time it could stay this quiet, she was poorly proven wrong.

 

“AHHHHHHH!” Joy screamed suddenly, making Yeri almost drop her cup of hot chocolate and marshmallows.

 

“What?!” Yeri yelled back. The two girls had fully captured Seulgi’s attention.

 

“Christmas is… tomorrow!” Joy waved her arms crazily, barely missing on elbowing her cup off the counter.

 

While Seulgi assumed that Yeri would reprimand Joy for shouting, she got the opposite, “Oh my God! You’re right! Miss Kang, tomorrow is Christmas!”

 

Seulgi froze, “What’s today?”

 

“Christmas Eve!” Joy and Yeri said in unison.

 

“Shit.”

 

“That’s a bad word!” Yeri covered both of her ears comically.

 

“Pft, it’s not like no one’s ever heard  _ you  _ say it,” Joy scoffed.

 

“Shut up!”

 

/-/-/

 

After Joy’s parents came back at around noon, Seulgi was dismissed from taking care of the devils and headed straight for Irene’s house. She knocked on the door rapidly, waiting for the usual smile Irene offered when she opened the door. This time wasn’t any different.

 

“What brings you here so early,” Irene commented, “You usually come later in the afternoon.”   
  


Seulgi dodged all the questions and went right to the topic, “Do you know what today is?”

 

Irene quirked her brows and looked at Seulgi quizzically, “The 24th.”

 

“And…?” Seulgi waited expectantly.

 

“Christmas Eve,” Irene realized with a soft grin, “Is this why you came early?”

 

“Right on, Miss Bae.”

 

/-/-/

 

“It says on the weather forecast we’ll finally be getting our first snow today,” Irene remarked, “Do you know how long I’ve been waiting for this?”   
  


“Ah, came at the right time. But, it hasn’t snowed at all this season yet?” Seulgi asked.

 

Irene shook her head, “No, but it feels like it should’ve, right? The weather’s been freezing ever since November that I’ve been counting the days for snow.”

 

“Looking forward to seeing it,” Seulgi beamed at Irene, who returned a smile that was fifty times brighter.

 

“Looking forward to seeing it with you.”

 

/-/-/

 

Sure enough, a few hours after Seulgi and Irene had gotten settled on the living room couch, fire crackling in front of them, the sky had clouded up, and no spots of blue were visible. White, fluffy flakes of white sprinkled down, lightly at first, but gaining momentum after hours. Seulgi and Irene didn’t notice until the latter pointed it out to the other, motioning to the frosted window like an excited child. 

 

“How long has it been snowing?” Irene turned to Seulgi, who just shrugged.

 

“No clue, but it’s not stopping anytime soon.”

 

“Check the time for me, Seulgi,” Irene tilted her head in the direction of where the clock was located.

 

“It’s around eight,” Seulgi put her elbow on the armrest and laid her head there, “Why?”

 

“I wanted to let you get home before the blizzard started,” Irene sighed.

 

“Blizzard?”

 

“Yep,” Irene grinned as she scooted closer to Seulgi, whose cheeks immediately reddened up at the close proximity, “And you have no choice but to spend the night here.”

 

/-/-/

 

Seulgi had gotten changed into Irene’s pajamas, which were, undoubtedly, many sizes smaller than her. In the end, she just chose to wear the older woman’s loose tee and even looser pajama shorts, not minding the way they still clung to her figure.

 

“You sure you’re fine with this?” Irene asked, looking Seulgi up and down. The younger woman immediately got shy and tried to cover herself discreetly.

 

“I can get you some other clothes if you’re uncomfortable, you know?” Irene solicitously asked.

 

“N-no, it’s fine,” Seulgi waved Irene off, trying to get that piercing stare off of her body. 

 

Irene frowned slightly but nodded, “Okay then.”

 

It was late into the night, and they decided to go to bed right then to wake up earlier tomorrow.

 

(It was no problem for Irene who was an early bird, but definitely a problem for Seulgi who slept like a rock until noon unless woken up by an alarm.)

 

“Which side of the bed do you want?” Irene pulled back the covers.

 

“I’m fine with any as long as you’re comfortable,” Seulgi smiled meekly.

 

“Might I tell you that I sleep in the middle of the bed then?” Irene teased, much to Seulgi’s surprise. “Kidding. I’ll go on the right if you’re good with that.”

 

“Y-yeah, that’ll work for me.”

 

They climbed into the bed, with Seulgi shivering a bit from the cold sheets.

 

Irene noticed and took her hands to rub them with her own, “Don’t worry, it gets warmer after a while.”

 

Seulgi’s cheeks became beet red from her touch, but she didn’t pull away. They got comfortable in the bed, and as Seulgi was about to fall asleep, she felt Irene’s front pressed against her back.

 

“S-sorry, it’s just that it hasn’t been getting any warmer.”

 

Seulgi put all of her fear away when she felt Irene shaking behind her and turned around to let Irene rest her face in the crook of her neck. The older woman’s shampoo smelled vaguely of citrus, unlike the usual lavender, but Seulgi wasn’t going to comment on that.

 

She placed a comforting, warm hand near Irene’s waist and put her other arm under Irene’s head to support her from under.

 

“This good?” Seulgi whispered to Irene.

 

She could feel Irene smiling into her neck, sensitive hairs there pricking up at the action, “Perfect.”

 

Seulgi mindlessly let one of her hands play with the strands of Irene’s soft tresses, “Good night, Irene.”

 

“Night, Seul.”

 

/-/-/

 

Surprisingly, Seulgi was the first one to wake up. The curtains were closed, not allowing any form of light to enter into the room, even though she knew Irene would usually have them open. She attempted to stretch, but then remembered the position she was in. Somewhere into the night, Seulgi must’ve wrapped her arms closer around Irene’s waist, with the other doing the same. Seulgi looked down to watch Irene lightly snoring, her chest moving up and down with every small breath she took. Irene looked so peaceful — just like her namesake —t hat Seulgi couldn’t help but swoon at the sight. 

 

Irene shifted in her sleep, pulling herself even further into Seulgi’s hold. The hand on Irene’s waist tightened, and they were flush against each other. Irene’s breath hitched ever so slightly and her eyes fluttered open, waking up to see Seulgi giving her a lopsided grin. 

 

“Sleep well?” Seulgi smirked and Irene’s gaze went down to their tangled legs underneath the blanket, then up to Seulgi’s playful stare. She hid her blush by nuzzling into the cotton of Seulgi’s shirt. 

 

“Ah!” Seulgi giggled, “That tickles!” The younger woman clutched onto Irene’s shirt, stopping her advances and holding Irene against her. Irene’s face found itself right back into Seulgi’s neck, her lips ghosting the skin there and her hot breath hitting it. 

 

“Payback,” Irene was the one to smirk this time, and Seulgi felt her lips curve. Seulgi anticipated to have those soft lips on her, but Irene stopped like cold turkey and got up from Seulgi’s hold. 

 

“Let’s go play in the snow!” Irene smiled casually as if nothing was about to happen. 

 

Seulgi laughed, but she didn’t understand why Irene suddenly pulled away. Or why her heart dropped because of it. 

 

/-/-/

 

They got suited in their winter gear, and Irene made sure to have Seulgi warm and tight in her outfit, much to the younger’s protests.

 

“It’s cold outside,” Irene warned.

 

“I’ll be fine! It’s too stuffy,” Seulgi unzipped her jacket but Irene zipped it right back up.

 

“Nope, you’re keeping that on.”

 

“But-”

 

“No buts. Now come on, I can see Joy and Yeri already playing in the snow.”

 

Seulgi grimaced, “They woke up before us?”

 

“Well, we woke up really late,” Irene chuckled.

 

“No~” Seulgi grinned, “ _ You  _ woke up late.”

 

“And you didn’t have the heart to shake me awake?” Irene smiled victoriously when it was clear that Seulgi couldn’t give an answer. “Exactly.”

 

“You win this time, Miss Bae,” Seulgi pouted.

 

Irene pressed a finger to Seulgi’s lips, “Don’t pout on me, it actually works.” She eased the corners of Seulgi’s lips with both hands so that they were now forming an upward curve, “There we go.” 

 

Her hands cupped Seulgi’s cheeks, and she gently squeezed, “C’mon Grinch, we don’t want the snow to melt, do we?” Irene waltzed out the door, leaving Seulgi rooted at her place, gulping at what just happened. 

 

/-/-/

 

The outside street was covered in a thick blanket of white. The snow went up to Seulgi’s knee, and she knew she’d have to get shoveling soon but she wanted to enjoy this moment of a winter wonderland for a bit more. Irene was ahead of her, walking toward the unsuspecting Joy and Yeri, who were too busy constructing their snow fort. Irene stooped down, taking a fistful of snow and shaping it into a ball. Seulgi shuddered at the look in her eyes: it was full of childish playfulness, and it was one of the rare looks that Seulgi had seen over the past few weeks of knowing Irene. Wow, she felt bad for Joy and Yeri. 

 

Irene slowly approached the two girls, her hand poised in the air and ready for catapulting. But, in the nick of time, Yeri whipped around with a sneaky look on her face, as if she had caught Irene, but what happened next was what shocked Seulgi the most. 

 

Seulgi felt like she had been shot in the chest, her body giving away and her back falling straight into the snow. Her breath had been sucked out of her lungs the moment she hit the ground. The cold air around her enveloped her, but thanks to the excessively large jacket, none of the melting snow seeped into her undergarments. 

 

She heard a distant chortle, “Miss Bae, that went amazingly well!” Joy complimented Irene.   
  


“Who thought she’d fall for it? Literally?” Yeri couldn’t stop laughing, and Seulgi heard her trying to catch her breath with little gasps escaping her.

 

Seulgi looked up straight into the sky, and she soon saw Irene towering over her. That was a first.

 

“You okay, Seul?” Her tone was concerned for a bit, but when she saw the huge, idiotic grin on Seulgi’s face, she began laughing along with the two girls.

 

“Did you guys plan this?” Seulgi asked in surprise.

 

“No dip, Sherlock!” Yeri said.

 

“But when?”

 

“When you were still inside, and I left to go outside,” Irene told her. “I thought you’d come out faster than that, to be honest, but you just stood in place like a statue!”

 

“Yeah, we saw that too, Miss Kang,” Joy said, her shoulders shaking from hiding her laughter.

 

Yeri’s eyes moved from the scene in front of her to check her surroundings, “Awh, all of your decorations are covered in snow now. I can’t see who won!”

 

“It’s obvious that Miss Bae won,” Joy said confidently.

 

Yeri giggled, “No, silly. We both thought that at the beginning, but now I think Miss Kang won this.”

 

Seulgi and Irene glanced at each other, breaking into large grins.

 

“So, who  _ did  _ win?” Irene challenged.

 

“I think I did,” Seulgi said, getting up from the snow and patting her pants of snow stuck there. Irene patted the rest left on her shoulders.

 

“Really? Well, I have one more thing up my sleeve,” Irene revealed.

 

“And that is?” Seulgi leaned in closer to Irene, so much so that the former could see her white breaths against the air.

 

“Agh, quit flirting and just go show her it!” Joy gagged.

 

“It’s cute, but  _ too cute _ , you know?” Yeri added.

 

“Okay, okay, that’s enough from both of you,” Seulgi shushed when seeing Irene’s pink-dusted cheeks. 

 

She whispered into the older woman’s ear, “Are you blushing?”

 

Irene glared back at her cutely, “It’s cold outside, dummy. And even if I were, I wouldn’t tell you!” She hissed back. 

 

Seulgi took one of Irene’s gloved hands into her own, “Now, what do you have to show me?”

 

/-/-/

 

The heating of Irene’s house greatly contrasted from the frigid coldness outside. Seulgi shut the door behind them as Irene turned around to address her.

 

“Wait here,” Irene said, “and close your eyes, please.”

 

“Oh, I’m scared now,” Seulgi’s eyes flicked back at Irene teasingly.

 

“Shush,” Irene put her pointer on Seulgi’s lips. Seulgi could count the number of times Irene’s touched her lips with her fingers, now. 

 

“Okay, be quick, though.”

 

“Don’t have to tell me twice,” Irene winked, “Close your eyes.”

 

Seulgi closed her eyes tightly and patiently waited for Irene to come back. It seemed like an eternity, but when she could smell the fragrance of lavender near her, she knew Irene was back. 

 

“Don’t open until I say so,” Irene ordered.

 

“Yes, Miss Bae. But I can’t wait any longer,” Seulgi whined.

 

“I came back after literally a minute, Seul.”

 

“That’s still too long!” 

 

Seulgi could hear some shuffling, “You can open your eyes now.”

 

Seulgi blinked her eyes open and saw nothing out of the ordinary, “What did you do?”

 

Irene smirked and brought a finger under Seulgi’s chin. She lifted her head up so that Seulgi’s eyes were looking up at the door frame. There hung a sprig of mistletoe above them, dangling lightly. 

 

Seulgi bit her lip when she saw the sprig and brought her attention back to Irene, “Oh, you’re sneaky.” Irene’s finger was still on her chin, but she soon replaced it with encircling her arms around Seulgi’s neck.

 

“You know the rules, Kang,” Irene whispered, bringing their foreheads together.

 

“I’m not one to go against tradition,” Seulgi wanted to respond that way, but all her words left her mouth, and she let her body take control. She closed the space remaining between them and connected their lips. Irene’s lips were soft against hers, and they slotted perfectly between Seulgi’s own slightly chapped ones. She felt the frost of their hearts melting, revealing their bare hearts for each other. Seulgi liked it that way.

 

Seulgi pulled Irene’s waist closer to her, trying to deepen the kiss, but Irene let go, breathless.

 

Irene nuzzled Seulgi’s nose, “Later. Joy and Yeri are waiting for us.”

 

Seulgi pouted and whined, “You can’t just expect me to stop after that!”   
  


“What did I tell you about pouting? And whining makes it worse,” Irene looked at her sternly.

 

That made Seulgi pout harder, resulting in a sweet peck from Irene’s side. When Irene pulled away, Seulgi followed her, trying to get a taste of more.

 

“I want more too,” Irene whispered sweetly, “But not now.”

 

“Do you know how long I’ve waited for this?” Seulgi frowned, stealing another kiss from Irene. She hugged the older woman, placing her chin on her shoulder.

 

“I’ve waited for this, too! You’re not the only one!” Irene exclaimed into Seulgi’s tangled locks. 

 

“Let’s go back outside and say goodbye,” Seulgi buried herself in Irene’s neck and placed a few kisses there, “I’m getting impatient.”

 

“Impatient for me?” Irene asked innocently.

 

Seulgi nodded vigorously. She headed straight for the door, turning the knob halfway before Irene stopped her.

 

“Seulgi, wait.”

 

Seulgi turned back to be pulled into Irene’s warm embrace. She kissed Seulgi slowly and longingly and stopped once they were out of breath.

 

Seulgi broke the silence, “Since you forgot a vital decoration, this means you lose. And I win,” Seulgi beamed in realization, pumping her fist into the air.

 

Irene groaned, “Whatever, I guess so.”

 

“Not only did I win this competition, but I also won something else way better,” Seulgi replied.

 

“What?” Irene was confused.

 

Seulgi pecked both of Irene’s reddened and cold cheeks, “You.”

 

Irene rolled her eyes but smiled widely anyway, “You’re such a dork.”

 

“I can be whatever you want me to be, Miss Bae,” Seulgi said the name, knowing it would irk Irene, but seeing her adorable annoyed face was more than enough for a prize.

 

Seulgi brought Irene’s face into her hands, tilting it down for her to give a forehead kiss.

 

“Merry Christmas, Irene.”

 

Irene sighed into the kiss, relaxing into Seulgi’s arms.

 

“Merry Christmas, Seulgi.”

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> I'm back from the dead :))) Merry Christmas!!! Well, it's Christmas day where I am, anyway. Hope everyone got what they wished for and enjoyed the holiday season <333


End file.
